This bride came in with about five months to her wedding. She specifically wanted a sleeved lace bodice without beading, and a moderately full skirt that wasn’t tulle. We went through a few dresses before it became clear I didn’t have quite what she was after. I suggested she explain to me her exact requirements, as if I were going to make her a made-to-measure dress - she showed me a picture of a dress and then an idea hit me!

I got her to try on an Essense of Australia 1662 dress, which is created from an organza base - similar to the chiffon dress in her inspiration photograph. I explained what I could do to redesign the dress to be close to the one she liked.

1. I removed all of the lace appliqué from the skirt, so that the lace stopped at the waistline.

2. I added lace 3/4 sleeves from a matching lace to the bodice.

4. Added a detailed and beaded dainty belt.

As you can see in the before and after pics, this dress underwent a significant style change with just a few easy alterations. It is essentially her own design - and doesn’t it look great! We are both really happy with the end result.

Connie xo